Shillong Lajong host East Bengal in their final battle of the I-League season on 5th March, Monday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong at 5:30PM. The tickets for the match will be available at The Mobile Centre and Sports Spirit Police Bazaar and SSA Stadium in Polo.

Shillong Lajong won their previous encounter against Aizawl FC at home on 19th February with a 2-1 margin with goals from Abdoulaye Koffi and Saihou Jagne.

The home team is gunning for nothing less than three points when they face East Bengal on Monday, in order to stand a chance for direct qualification into the Super Cup and a top five finish.

The Reds have dropped to sixth with 21 points after staying in the fifth position for quite a long time. They won six, drew three and lost eight games and scored a total of 15 goals this season.

Lajong started the season on a high with two consecutive victories at home against Gokulam and Churchill Brothers. They faced their first loss of the I-League 2017-18 campaign against East Bengal after conceding five goals and but managing to net one goal back in Kolkata on 9th December.

Shillong Lajong holds a good home record against East Bengal with four wins, one draw and two losses. Their biggest margin victory over the Bengal club was in the 2014-15 season with a 5-1 scoreline. The young Lajong squad are hoping to deliver a top-notch performance on Monday in the last game of the I-League season.

Coach Alison shared his thoughts ahead of the match on Monday. He said, “It is a very important match for us because if we win we will be in top 5, it is also going to be a very tough match against East Bengal but we are ready for it.”
“We worked in all departments and most importantly recovery. A game is a game; both the teams are under pressure. We want to be in top 5 and on Monday we have to work hard to get 3 points.”
“We are going to play like it’s the last game of our lives. We cannot lose and this is our home ground we have to take full advantage.”
Meanwhile, East Bengal FC won their previous match against Chennai City FC on 24th February by 7-1 and this was also their biggest margin victory of the season so far.

The Kolkata outfit is desperately looking for three points on Monday in order to keep their maiden I-League title hopes alive before they take on Neroca in their final game of the season.

Khalid Jamil’s boys have scored the highest number of goals so far with 29 and their highest scorer is Yusa Katsumi with 6 goals. They are currently in the third position just three points away from the current table leaders, Minerva Punjab FC, who are on 32 points.

Speaking ahead of the match, their head coach, Khalid Jamil said, “It is a very vital match on Monday, we have to do well because we are playing against a good team and it is going to be very difficult.”

“Everybody must give 100 percent. We will give our best and everything will be fine.”

“We have to play as a team and we don’t have any problem with the climate. We must stay positive.”

(Shillong Lajong FC)